What role does money play in citizens’ disengagement?

There has probably never been a time in human civilization when money did not have an influence on politics. It is unlikely, though, that its influence over American politics and civic engagement has ever been quite as overwhelming and disheartening as it is today. Our representative republic is based on the simple concept of one person, one vote. Yet increasingly, our version of democracy is more like a 'one dollar, one vote” oligarchy. The impact has pushed civic engagement into a death spiral, and the influence of money and power on elected officials has the potential to override our votes.

Some have argued that there really isn't all that much money in our elections. After all, the 2012 elections spent about $7 billion across the presidential and congressional campaigns, which sounds like a lot until you see that it is less than the combined advertising budgets of just General Motors and Procter & Gamble, let alone the rest of the advertising in which America is engaged. While some may argue that this is a demonstration of our misplaced priorities, it is hardly a measure of political spending's impact

Spending on elections is only a fraction of the money that influences our politics directly. In between voting days, vast sums are used to peddle influence and curry favor in government entities from congressional halls to city halls. Shady 'social welfare” organizations (501(c) 4 groups) have spent enormous sums to influence laws and regulations to benefit their powerful moneyed interests. Attempts have been made at creating a left-leaning counterbalance to ALEC, but so far, none can match its breadth and depth.

Consider that it was just this kind of influence peddling that led to the repeal of Glass-Steagall, the post-Depression regulations that kept big banks out of risky investing for decades. That repeal is one of the factors that can be connected directly to the 2008 financial collapse, which devastated our economy, yet saw banks considered 'too big to fail,” and bankers considered too big to jail. Then in 2010 an organization called 'Citizens United” won a Supreme Court case, one that some have called the worst decision since Dred Scott, which codified the concept that money is in fact speech, and corporations are in fact people. Note carefully: not that they are made up of people, but that a corporation is a constitutionally protected person, a decision that confused even the denizens of corporations.

From local zoning decisions to international trade decisions to military decisions, the American individual is seeing his or her own interests and opinions shoved aside in favor of powerful conglomerates with no national allegiance, and superwealthy individuals who sway whole elections with their checkbooks. Meanwhile those same powerful interests guide our media and popular culture, inundating us with pundit pabulum and mass distraction, so that fewer citizens can name the Speaker of the House than can tell you who won the last season of Dancing with the Stars. In our schools, passing a civics test is a requirement for high school graduation in only nine states, and no, Iowa is not one of them.

Small wonder then that the turnout for the 2014 midterms was only 36.4 percent, the lowest since a large portion of the electorate was overseas fighting the Axis 72 years prior. Money has been used first to manipulate our democracy, and then to distract us all, so that ignorance and apathy protect the powerful from the torches and pitchforks of an informed and enfranchised electorate.

Our collective apathy and short attention spans have made it easy for the powerful interests to keep the electorate jaded and cynical, and they do so by design.

Is it hopeless? Not quite. Many solutions are out there, but they will require good old-fashioned American hard work, desire, and persistence. Some people are working to overturn the Citizens United decision through an Article V convention (visit Wolf-Pac.com, among others, for more on that). We could declare Election Day a national holiday, or offer employers incentives to make it easier for workers to vote. Expand vote-by-mail, make registering easier instead of harder, and someday solve the security challenges of Internet voting. Require civics again in all schools. Reconsider public funding of elections. Consider removing the 501(c) 4 tax exemption. If we can't prevent them from attempting to buy elections and legislation, perhaps we can make them pay taxes.

Or maybe, all we need is for all our elected officials to wear NASCAR jackets, showing clearly whose interests they are truly serving.

Note: An earlier version of this column incorrectly identified the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) as a 501(c)(4) organization. The group has 501(c)(3) tax status.

' This is one of the inaugural columns written by members of The Gazette Writers Circle, which is a diverse, select group of community members who explore and discuss local issues. Circle member Kurt Michael Friese led a team comprised of Dan Langfield, Russ Gerst and Alan Lewis in this specific discussion, which was a sub-section of learning why more Eastern Iowans aren't involved in the public decision-making process. Comments: (319) 398-8469; editorial@thegazette.com